Dark Demons
by Tap-Chan
Summary: Two years ago, Zach and Geoffrey left all those who loved them behind and made their home in Japan. Both battled dark hungry demons. Both expected little of salvation. And then, one night...everything changed.(Sequel Spin-off from my 'Dark Angel'.)
1. Prologue: Nippon, Tokyo

Title: Dark Demons  
  
Author: Tapestry  
  
Rating: R  
  
Email: Shaddow_Cat@hotmail.com  
  
Standard Disclaimer Apply  
  
*...* denotes mind speaking  
  
29/11/03  
  
  
  
"Woman was created from the ribs of man  
  
Not from his head to top him  
  
Nor from his feet to be walked upon  
  
She was made from his side to be his equal  
  
From beneath his arms to be protected  
  
From very near his heart to be loved."  
  
--Anonymous--  
  
  
  
AN: How long has it been since I've done a story? Eh....VERY long. So,  
  
I once said I had an idea for a spin-off on Dark Angel. Well, this  
  
story revolves around the last two bachelors from the story.... Feels  
  
weird. I've only written one story each revolving around the senshi.  
  
Disclaimer Note: As in 'Dark Angel', abilities of characters, are based on  
  
Christine Feehan's Dark Series. If you like my story,   
  
you'll love hers! Happy reading. (^-^)  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
~ Prologue: Nippon (Japan), Tokyo ~  
  
  
  
A man with strawberry blonde hair and greenish blue eyes stared out into  
  
the bustling night, out to the busy streets of Tokyo. People were on the   
  
road, in their cars heading for home after a long tiring day of work. Their   
  
day would be ending soon.  
  
  
  
His, was just beginning.  
  
  
  
Turning to look at the other man who sat in the shadows, his eyes found  
  
him easily in the darkness. He saw things in the night as if he were  
  
looking at them in broad daylight.  
  
  
  
It had been nearly two years since their arrival in Japan. Upon arriving,   
  
they had hopped from city to city before finally settling down in Tokyo.   
  
Asia was quiet, and so they led fairly peaceful lives with only an undead  
  
now and then to break the dull cycle. They were isolated from their kind.   
  
A self-banishment that both had agreed to undertake with each other.  
  
  
  
It had been many years, more than a century since he had been to Japan.  
  
Much had changed since the old days. In the olden days he had adopted a  
  
japanese name, but now he was merely Zachary Selvaggio.   
  
  
  
"What has you in such anxiety, Zachary? I can feel the tension you are  
  
radiating from over here." murmured Geoffrey in a quiet and almost  
  
humourous tone of voice. The short period of time they had spent here in  
  
this country had certainly mellowed him out some what.  
  
  
  
But Zachary was not a fool to think the demon in Geoffrey had quieted  
  
down so easily. No, it was still there....deep within, slumbering. And all  
  
that would take to wake it, would be a kill.  
  
  
  
Or perhaps the something that he could feel was coming...  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
To be continued...  
  
  
  
Finished: 19/12/03  
  
Edited: 21/12/03  
  
It's a VERY short prologue I know. I left it alone awhile to see if there  
  
was anything else I would add... but well... nada. (^^;;  
  
So lets just leave like this rather than spoil the story. :3 


	2. Chapter 1: Strangers

Title: Dark Demons  
  
Author: Tapestry  
  
Rating: R  
  
Email: ShaddowCathotmail.com  
  
Standard Disclaimer Apply  
  
... denotes mind speaking  
  
2/01/04   
  
"Woman was created from the ribs of man  
  
Not from his head to top him  
  
Nor from his feet to be walked upon  
  
She was made from his side to be his equal  
  
From beneath his arms to be protected  
  
From very near his heart to be loved."  
  
--Anonymous--  
  
AN: I think I have to make something clear that Geoffrey is not Greg.  
  
Geoffrey's name is pronounced Jeffrey. ('')  
  
9/6/04 - You'll have to excuse me as I haven't written a word in almost   
  
6 months.  
  
Chapter 1: Strangers   
  
The sirens wailed loudly into the night as an ambulance hurtled through  
  
the streets towards Tokyo General. Screeching to a halt at the emergency  
  
entrance, nurses and medical personnel lifted the patients out of the   
  
ambulance and hurriedly wheeled them, the doctor on duty snapping out  
  
orders at a rapid pace.  
  
The sounds of clacking shoes sounded on the tiled floors as they pushed  
  
the patients into the emergency rooms.  
  
Dr. Kagawara stared in horror at the bloody patient lying still on  
  
the examination table, his chest barely rising as it was all but ripped  
  
out.   
  
"This boy needs emergency surgery, STAT!" he hollered. "Some one page  
  
Mizuno-sensei!"  
  
"Sensei! This one's going into shock!" exclaimed a nurse.  
  
Kagawara hurried over to the nurse's side as all his thoughts vanished,  
  
scattering like leaves in the wind. The only thing that was upper most in  
  
his mind was to save as many lives as possible on this horrific night of  
  
tragedy...  
  
Dr. Mizuno Ami heard the loudspeakers page her name on the comm system,  
  
the voice of the nurse on duty, echoing through the hospital corridors.  
  
Her feet, tired from the day's work immediately turned around, taking her  
  
to the emergency rooms. Her shift was nearly over, but if the people at   
  
the wards needed her, she couldn't, wouldn't turn her back on them.  
  
Reaching the wards, she snapped sterilized rubber gloves onto her hands,  
  
a mask to cover the lower portion of her face and stepped into the  
  
pandemonium that was the emergency rooms.  
  
"Give me a quick stat," she ordered at a nurse, her eyes seeking the  
  
patient, trying to determine the extensiveness of the injuries.  
  
One side of the man's face was swollen and purple with torn skin. He  
  
was nearly unrecognizable with his bloated features. His nose and jaw were  
  
obviously broken.  
  
What gave her pause was the bloody wound in his chest. If you could call  
  
it a wound. It resembled more of a gaping bloody hole.   
  
Mizuno Ami, hardly heard what the nurse told her. Her mind was already  
  
seeking out the man's. He lived still... and his will was strong.  
  
"Get him into surgery! Immediately! My God, why didn't you wheel him in  
  
earlier? NOW! Go go go!" exclaimed Ami, hurrying the nurses and medical   
  
aids.  
  
She was by the next curtain in a flash, yanking it open. Her colleague,  
  
Dr. Kagawara turned to look at her, shaking his head in despair.  
  
This one had died.   
  
Her work had kept her at the hospital until it was nearly dawn. She was  
  
tired and only wanted to go home and drop onto her bed and into the arms  
  
of sleep. A traffic accident.  
  
Six people were injured and two of them were still in critical care.  
  
Another three had died. She hadn't been able to coax them back from the  
  
clutches of death.  
  
She had tried to tell herself, that she and her colleagues had already  
  
pulled miracles out of their hats. A Trauma Unit couldn't have done any  
  
better. Yes, she was the doctor that worked miracles and had pulled more  
  
people back from death's door than any doctor her age. Everyone in the  
  
local medical field had said so.  
  
But those thoughts didn't provide her any solace in the least. She was  
  
drained. In mind, body and soul...  
  
This was the part of her job she hated, always questioning if there had  
  
been somthing else she could have done to save that patient's life.   
  
Something more, some other alternative to everything she had decided.  
  
But everytime, nothing came to mind.  
  
"Mizuno-sensei, are you still here?" exclaimed a nurse.  
  
Ami gave the nurse a smile. "I was just thinking...I'll be going soon. I  
  
know what you're going to say."  
  
The nurse merely nodded. It was no secret that many nurses and other  
  
doctors had had to literally force Dr. Mizuno Ami into a car and make her  
  
go home for rest. Usually an attendent drove the good doctor home.  
  
But tonight, there was no need for that.   
  
Checking her watch as she headed towards her car, Ami sighed. 5.30am.  
  
The sun would probably be rising in another hour or two. What she needed   
  
was a hot shower, maybe four to six hours of sleep and then, good strong   
  
coffee before her 1pm shift started.  
  
Reaching her car, her thoughts moving towards a young patient in the  
  
surgery ward, she fished about her purse for her car keys.  
  
She felt the disturbance before she heard it. Tensing, she expected an   
  
attack from a mugger or some snatch thief. What she hadn't expected was  
  
coming face to face with some evil looking person, more monster like than   
  
man, his heavy breathing and sallow complexion with the sunken cheekbones  
  
made her wonder if he was perhaps a druggie looking for cash to get a  
  
quick fix.  
  
The stench of blood and the horrible wounds that dripped drew her eyes,   
  
the doctor part of her, telling her to go the man and care for his wounds.  
  
The other part, probably the sane part, told her to run, screaming from the  
  
horrible looking man as fast as possible.  
  
Yet, she was rooted to the spot, unable to do either.  
  
The man hissed, his eyes like lasers, burning her skin with the hatred  
  
she saw in them. His thin lips peeled back revealing receding gums and  
  
dirty teeth stained a slight brown. Her mind took note of the unusually  
  
large, long canine teeth.  
  
A clawed hand reached out towards her when suddenly, the night exploded  
  
and the darkness disappeared for one brief moment.  
  
When she could open her eyes again and not be blinded, all she saw before  
  
her were a pile of ashes that were quickly being swept away by a soft   
  
breeze.  
  
Her eyes lifted further up and what she saw stole her breath.  
  
A foreign man stood a few feet away staring at her. He was beautiful with  
  
a strong jaw and strawberry blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail. She  
  
couldn't make out the eye colour in the dark but guessed it was blue.  
  
He was tall and if he had stood next to her, she would probably only reach   
  
his shoulders. Why were foreign men so big?  
  
Then, she blinked. And he was gone, leaving her to wonder, if eveything  
  
that had just happened had been a figment of her tired imagination.  
  
Zachary reappeared in the shadows, only a mere 30 metres away from where  
  
he had once stood. His heart was pounding, the sound echoing in his ears.  
  
He could scarcely believe what all the signs were telling him. Couldn't  
  
come to grips with every molecule in his body that was screaming at him to  
  
snatch the tiny asian woman and fly off into the night like some  
  
supernatural Tarzan without the vines and loin cloth.  
  
He could still smell her in the air. He watched her stand by her car for  
  
a long while before she moved, shaking her head as if to clear the   
  
cobwebs from her thoughts. She turned her head, looking around her.  
  
Her head stilled to stare at his direction, and for one moment, he   
  
could almost believe that she knew he was still there... watching her.  
  
His nocturnal eyes with their superb vision made out her face in the dim  
  
light.  
  
To him, she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Her face was  
  
all eyes. Wide ocean blue eyes set in a pale ivory translucent face framed  
  
with a mop of thick blue black hair that curled at the ends. She had to  
  
have had at least one foreign ancestor. No Japanese woman had blue eyes or  
  
the classic cheekbones this young woman displayed.  
  
The riot of emotions that ran through his being were truly intoxicating.  
  
It had been so long since he had felt any peace from the rage and hatred  
  
that had been festering inside his soul. He knew of the black stain that  
  
ate at every male of his race...the sexual heat that drove the males to  
  
insanity.  
  
He had come out to feed, and had found a foul creature of his own race.  
  
Undead. And the monstrosity had in turn, led him to salvation. His heart  
  
skipped a beat and his breathing stopped as the tiny woman made a final  
  
sweep of the area with her eyes, got into her car and drove away into the  
  
darkness.  
  
He stood there, breathing again, assessing his moves. He hungered for   
  
this female and he knew, she could save his soul and bring out the love   
  
and possessiveness that existed... deep within him.  
  
She was his. And nothing on earth could keep her from him.  
  
Zachary returned to the home he shared with Geoffrey, his senses fanned  
  
out, searching for a trace of the other male though it was doubtful if   
  
Geoffrey would be found if he didn't want to be.  
  
"You're back."  
  
Zach had to keep himself from turning around and plowing a fist at the  
  
voice.  
  
"You always have to do that don't you? Mask your presence."  
  
"Habit, old friend." chuckled Geoffrey easily. Geoffrey's eyes moved  
  
over Zach and his eyes frowned. "You battled an undead." It was a statement,  
  
not a question.  
  
"I've found her, Geoffrey. My mate..."  
  
The man's face as impassive, but his eyes lit with flame and curiosity.  
  
"She is human?"  
  
"Yes, apparently native to this land. She had asian features and I   
  
believe she is a human healer. What is that word the humans use?"  
  
"A doctor?" echoed Geoffrey in surprise. "You are sure?"  
  
"I smelled the odour of blood and medicine upon her skin. I am not wrong.  
  
She works in the hospital...and I will go there soon, and claim her for my  
  
own."  
  
"I wish you luck, my friend. The females of this time are unpredictable  
  
and without a doubt, stubbornly independent to a fault. If she is who you  
  
say, you shall have your work cut out for you." murmured Geoffrey before  
  
he disappeared into a wisp of smoke, seeking his resting place as dawn  
  
slowly came, creeping to fill their night world, with light.  
  
Dawn was beginning to come, and as Geoffrey Balzac lay deep in his   
  
underground resting chamber, his soul cried out in denial and injustice at  
  
Zachary's good fortune. Hatred grew but was swiftly tamped down and   
  
locked deep. He would be alone in his loneliness again. But a corner of  
  
his brain chided him at being petty, at resenting the good fortune of   
  
others... Was he even now already heading down into the brink of  
  
madness that lay like a quicksand trap for all the males of his kind?  
  
Two years ago, he had contemplated eternal rest... the sleep of forever.  
  
But others of his kind, they had thought his actions rash and  
  
imprisoned him in deep sleep beneath the earth, waiting till he had,  
  
could rethink his position in life and society.  
  
He had rethought and had decided to give life another chance. He did  
  
not want to fail in the expectations that came to him nor did he want to  
  
run away. He would be stronger and this, was a test.  
  
Of time, and iron will.  
  
Willing himself to sleep, Geoffrey tried not to think about the  
  
consequences if he ever gave into the demon that lusted for blood and  
  
cried out at what it thought was injustice. A man could easily slide into  
  
darkness...  
  
And if he could not control this soon, he would have to go without  
  
Zachary to a new land, a harder existence. He would have to leave...  
  
Just before he succumbed to sleep, he heard a small voice reach out and  
  
touch his mind.  
  
Everything will be fine...  
  
Ami woke to the loud blaring of her dreaded alarm clock. She had no idea  
  
how long the blasted thing had been ringing, but it sure as hell felt like  
  
it had been ringing all night.  
  
Stretching out a hand, she slammed the clock's snooze button and blearily  
  
lifted her head off her comfortable pillow to squint at the blurry numbers  
  
that seemed to just want to keep congealing together and sabotage her   
  
attempt at trying to tell time.  
  
When the numbers could be made out, Ami shot out of bed and into the  
  
bathroom at a speed that would have made Speedy Gonzales proud.  
  
She could hardly believe it...  
  
Twelve! It was blasted TWELVE in the afternoon. Where had the hours gone?  
  
Ami hastily showered and was out of the bathroom at 12.15pm. Lunch! And  
  
coffee! Of all the days that she had to oversleep...  
  
It just had to be the day of her 1pm shift.  
  
Not to mention the promise to visit, a young girl in her late teens had  
  
wheedled from her in exchange for obedience to the hospital staff.  
  
This day just kept getting better and better.  
  
Ami managed to make it to the hospital with 5 minutes to spare. Giving  
  
quick instructions to the nurse at the desk, she made her way towards one  
  
of the surgery wards.  
  
Peeking into the room, she noted the pale girl who occupied it, was awake  
  
with her attention focused on the book she was reading.  
  
"Konnichiwa, Mizuno-sensei. I've been expecting you."  
  
Ami wasn't surprised when the girl-child spoke. The girl had always had  
  
the uncanny knowledge whenever anyone was about to knock or call into the  
  
room.   
  
And it was because of this, she felt an affinity with the pale   
  
dark-haired girl. She was different and Mizuno Ami knew what it was like to   
  
be different.  
  
It really was a shame...  
  
The girl was so young and lovely. Too young to die, and yet there was  
  
nothing she could do about the girl's condition except make her comfortable.  
  
Cancer.  
  
Cancer of the bone that ate away at her cells. It had been too late when  
  
it had been discovered, the cancer had spread like wildfire throughout the  
  
girl's body. She would never see another year, and she would have been only  
  
twenty years old if she had.  
  
"How are you today, Hotaru-chan?"  
  
5 days later...  
  
He couldn't take it anymore. He'd been watching her from the shadows for  
  
four consecutive nights. Nowadays, he was out a little before the sun set,  
  
a quick feed and he was on his way towards Tokyo General. This night was  
  
no different.  
  
Except, there seemed to be some sort of uproar happening within the  
  
hospital.   
  
The police had interviewed everyone related, but Dr. Mizuno Ami knew  
  
tonight would be a long one. Things like this weren't supposed to happen.  
  
One of the patients that had been brought in from the traffic accident  
  
5 nights ago had been murdered in their bed. Staked in the heart with   
  
their throat slit. The victim was a young boy of 17 and Ami remembered him.  
  
She had saved his life... but what had really made the boy stand out   
  
from all the other victims was that he had been special.  
  
Like her. Like Hotaru.  
  
She knew for she had touched the boy's mind and it saddened her that he  
  
was now gone. Of this, she did not tell the police. It would also stand to  
  
reason, they probably would not believe her anyway.  
  
Zachary frowned in distaste.  
  
He still couldn't understand the human penchance to murder their own   
  
kind. Frankly, the selfishness of the human race was quite disgusting at  
  
times. But the stake... someone had obviously believed the young one a  
  
"vampire". The name humans had long called his unnamed race and any species  
  
that drank blood to survive.  
  
Could human vampire hunters be in Japan?  
  
Zach frowned and relayed the information to Geoffrey, revulsion clear in  
  
his mind at the very thought.  
  
Two years ago, human vampire hunters had nearly cost the lives of his  
  
oldest and dearest friend and leader, Darien Alessandros and his mate,   
  
Serena James. He had learned that night... that humans were never to be  
  
underestimated.  
  
And he didn't like it, that his mate was working here, so close to   
  
unidentified danger.  
  
There would be no time to waste.  
  
He would reveal himself to the good doctor, tonight.  
  
Geoffrey materialized in a dark area of the hospital and looked around,  
  
trying to determine where exactly in the hospital he was. It looked like  
  
the hospital's linen room.  
  
His friend had filled him in on the little information available and  
  
it had not sat well with him. If there were any of these human murderers  
  
about, he needed to know of it.  
  
Tomoe Hotaru was on the run from her nurses. She had escaped her room  
  
and so far, eluded all atempts to find her. She knew, as long as nobody  
  
sent Mizuno-sensei after her, nobody was going to find her.  
  
At a young age, she had discovered her ability to predict possible  
  
future events, this had helped her immensely on the streets. However, the  
  
one thing she hadn't predicted was the disease that even now, was ravaging  
  
her body.  
  
At 19 going on 20 years of age, Tomoe Hotaru had been on her own for most  
  
of her life and greatly valued her independence. Even more so, since she  
  
was always in poor health.  
  
She didn't want to die, cooped up in the boring hospital room. She  
  
wanted some excitement before her young life ended. She wished she  
  
had wanted it sooner as she had always only stayed in the shadows before,  
  
steering clear of any conflict between the gangs in the neighbourhood she  
  
had resided in.  
  
And tonight, freedom awaited. She felt a little twinge of regret   
  
concerning, Mizuno-sensei. She liked the young doctor, knew that she   
  
understood that she, Hotaru, was different.  
  
Hotaru sensed the same difference in the doctor.  
  
Calmly, Hotaru backed into the linen closet. All she had to do, was wait  
  
until the nurse coming down the hall passed by and she would be on her  
  
way to freedom.  
  
What she didn't count on, was backing straight into a solid wall. A  
  
wall with arms.  
  
Damn.  
  
Geoffrey felt an infinitely small, fine-boned frame back into him and  
  
tensed. Instinctively, his hands came up to catch hold of the small   
  
creature. A quick scan determined that the 'creature' was a tiny human  
  
female.  
  
In the waning light, he could still see her features that were   
  
shown by the contrasting shadows and dim fading light.  
  
She was small, not even reaching his shoulder, she stood only at half-  
  
chest height. Her dark hair was shoulder length and straight with bangs  
  
covering her forehead.  
  
Her face had a fragile look about her and his hands merely reaffirmed  
  
what that first opinion had been. Fine-boned.  
  
She was staring up at him with wide eyes, a look of shock written all   
  
over her face.  
  
For some reason, that irritated him and brought forth many other head  
  
spinning emotions that startled his composure.  
  
"What are you doing skulking about in here?" he boomed imperiously.  
  
Hotaru could give no answer before she realized, he too had been   
  
wandering about in a dark linen room.  
  
"I could ask you the same thing!" she retorted.  
  
She heard a muttered oath before she was dragged from the room into the  
  
brightly lit corridor of the hospital.  
  
Violet.  
  
Her eyes were an unsual violet purple.  
  
His breath caught and his heart rate sped up. Something had clicked when  
  
he had heard her voice. He recognized it as one he had heard from a not  
  
so long ago dream...  
  
He dared not to hope, but was this slip of a girl...  
  
His mate for life, at last?  
  
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
To be continued...  
  
Okay, I'm finished! I'm not writing a very long chapter as I used to do.   
  
No time and not very inspired with any ideas for the moment. This chappie  
  
was just to introduce the meetings between our two couples for the moment.  
  
I have to say... animation IS really busy and tough!  
  
Finished: 14/6/04  
  
Edited: 15/6/04 


	3. Chapter 2: Shadows

Dark Demons  
by Tapestry  
Rated: R (M)  
Standard Disclaimer Apply  
Elements from 'Dark Series' by Christine Feehan  
_italics for telepathic convo  
_1/6/05

"Woman was created from the ribs of man  
Not from his head to top him  
Nor from his feet to be walked upon  
She was made from his side to be his equal  
From beneath his arms to be protected  
From very near his heart to be loved."  
--Anonymous--

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

- Chapter 2: Shadows -

Mizuno Ami blinked her eyes blearily as her pager went off, startling her out of a nap she had inadvertently dozed off to. Shuffling the papers strewn on her desk, she finally found it and squinted at the message that appeared flashing on the offending object.  
Jumping from her seat, she shrugged into her doctor's lab coat and rushed out of the office. The young patient, Tomoe Hotaru was missing and none of the nurses could find her.

'That girl! She promised!' sighed Ami in her mind, her heels clacking on the hospital hallway tiles.

Extending her senses, Mizuno Ami went off in search of her elusive and reluctant patient.

Tomoe Hotaru stared up at the large man. Large being the defining word. He was definitely a foreigner, his hard sculpted face, eyes that burned like blue flame and dark piercing, no asian features there. Surprisingly, he spoke japanese fluently without an odd accent either, an accent that many foreigners tended to have.

He still had her wrist locked in his fist, and he was staring at her in an odd way that made her feel as if he were staring into the depths of her soul and seeing right through every barrier she had. He unnerved her.

She tried to drag her hand away but his grip didn't budge, she watched his eyes narrow and ceased her attempts to escape, her mind racing and panicking. A presence entered her thoughts and soothed, projecting warmth and security...

Familiar.

Her eyes widened, she recognized the touch... it was the presence she had heard crying out in despair and loneliness in her dreams. The presence she had reached out to and given comfort.

She sucked in a deep breath. It couldn't be...

A smile curved his lips.

"You remember..." was all he said.

------------

Zachary sensed Geoffrey's presence in the hospital, the demon reared its head but was swiftly buried. It was a dangerous time for him, his mate was here and the presence of another male so close nearby prickled at his demon. But Geoffrey was a friend, and he had probably come to investigate the possibility of human vampire hunters in the city.

His senses told him she was about to turn the corner in front of him. He smiled.

Deliberately, he placed himself in front of that particular corner and waited for everything else that followed.

She slammed into him and bounced off his chest, catching her before she fell to the ground. He watched in interest as she rubbed the bridge of her nose, furtively apologising at the same time.

Ami felt as if she had walked into a brick wall, but the arms that caught her belied otherwise. Rubbing her poor nose, she apologised to the man, not really paying attention he still hadn't released her from the circle of his arms.

Coming back into focus, she looked up to see just who she had run into, and her breath caught.

It was the foreign man from that hallucination she had had on the night of the emergency. The same build and strawberry blonde hair tied back at his nape. He was staring at her with knowing blue-green eyes, a small smile curving his lips.

'So, his eyes weren't just blue...'

"Are you alright?" he asked, his voice rich and fluid, like a dark song gliding over her senses.

"Yes, I'm fine." muttered Ami, trying to calm her wildly beating heart, a first time experience in her twenty-six years.

"This might be an odd question, but, have I seen you before?" asked Ami still staring.

Zach laughed. "Perhaps? But I think I would remember a lovely face like yours."

Zach smiled politely. It wasn't time for her to know what he was yet, he had to tread slowly on this. Scanning her mind, he found with relief she wasn't on her way to an emergency or anything.

"My name is Zachary Selvaggio, and you?"

"Doctor Mizuno Ami." replied Ami automatically. She felt mesmerized, but quickly snapped back to attention.

"I'm sorry, I'm looking for a patient, so I must continue on my way. Good day, sir."

She had to get away... he was wreaking havoc on her faculties.

Zach chuckled to himself. He saw through her ploy easily, she wasn't escaping that easily, not if he could help it. He had waited hundreds of years for her, and now that he had finally made himself known, he wasn't going to let her push him from her existence.

"Actually, maybe you could point me back to the entrance? I seem to be lost." smiled Zach.

Ami blinked.

"Oh." Well, she had nothing she could say to that.

------------

Geoffrey stared down at the tiny girl-child who was his mate, her emotions running riot from panic to curiosity to attraction, before bouncing back and forth again to the other turbulent and chaotic feelings in her body.

"You wear the dressing of a hospital patient. Why are you running about in the halls?" asked Geoffrey, tilting his head in puzzlement.

"I'm escaping, genius." she retorted, struggling in his arms.

"I think not."

If she was ill, he couldn't allow her to be running off to who knew where. He was about to send himself into her body to assess her illness when a voice called out a command.

"Hotaru! You there, unhand her, this instant!"

Turning his head, he saw a young woman in a white lab coat, her tiny feet marching imperiously towards him. Her short blue-black hair ruffling around her ears, and her blue eyes flashing at him.

And right behind her was Zachary.

"Oh great." muttered Hotaru under her breath.

"Geoffrey." murmured Zach.

"Friend of yours?" asked the doctor.

"Hmm, Geoffrey, this is Dr. Mizuno Ami," introduced Zach easily. _'My mate.'_ The words shimmered easily into his mind as Geoffrey tilted his head to assess the doctor. She was small sized, and had an air of serenity about her.

_'I am pleased to meet your mate for life, my friend.'_

_'She will be a handful, this one. Already she seeks to run from me.' _chuckled Zachary.

"Mizuno-sensei, this is my housemate and friend, Geoffrey Balzac." smiled Zach, turning his attention to the petite doctor.

"Your charge, doctor?" asked Geoffrey smoothly, referring to Hotaru. His tone was mild and complacent, yet Zach could read Geoffrey's body language easily in the unyielding hold the other man had on the pale violet eyed girl. His posture towering over hers, was protective.

Zach blinked in surprise. Could it be...?

"Not exactly. However, I do check up on her once in awhile. She has the habit of trying to escape, this one." muttered Ami, turning a reprimanding eye on Hotaru.

"You promised me, Hotaru-chan."

"I know, I know. I'm sorry. But, you know how much I dislike being cooped up here. With my limited time and all..."

"Exactly why you have to remain here, Hotaru. You shouldn't aggravate your condition any further!"

"What would it matter? I'm dying anyway." murmured Hotaru calmly. She would not be bitter, she had long accepted that was to be her lot in life that she would not live to see her 20th birthday.

Beside her, the large man called Geoffrey stiffened and gripped her hand in his firmly.

"What exactly is wrong with her, Mizuno-sensei?" asked Geoffrey politely.

"I'm not a liberty to tell you her condition, Mr. Balzac, nor do I see any need for your interest in this matter." sighed Ami wearily.

Zach moved closer to Ami in a protective stance as he saw Geoffrey move subtly in protest.

"I have cancer of the bone, Mr. Balzac. Terminal."

------------

Funny how a few nights ago, he had been the one to be staring out into the night while Geoffrey was in his place.

Zachary Selvaggio watched Geoffrey in silence as the vampire hunter said nothing, watching the flickering lights of red, yellow and a myriad of other flashing colours dance in the distance.

He wondered what Geoffrey was feeling?

The joy and ecstasy of finding one's mate only to have that reality plunge into painful realization that she was dying? The heaven and yet hell paradox.

"It's funny, Zachary. She has never had the opportunity to see this sight which I am now watching and have always taken for granted." began Geoffrey as he broke the silence.

"Geoffrey?"

"She has lived her life on the streets in hiding from the evil shadows that lurk in the bowels of every city, Zachary."

"You feel guilty for not being here to protect her." stated Zach.

Geoffrey said nothing and merely continued his silent vigil by the window.

"You want to turn her."

"Yes. That would save her...and yet, I know I am being selfish. Because that is what I want."

"You fear she will reject our way of life?"

"Yes, that and the fact that I could save her without having to turn her. But I know in my soul, I would offer her the choice of becoming one of us without telling her of the alternative. Because I am selfish and want her bound to me for all eternity." murmured Geoffrey, as he bowed his head in shame.

"Then let her get to know you, Geoffrey. And let her choose."

Geoffrey turned to stare at the strawberry blonde man. His blue-green eyes locking with his own blue ones.

A moment of pregnant silence passed between the two men before Geoffrey finally glanced away, breaking the stare.

"There's still the issue of the human murderers, possibly in the hospital. The boy they murdered was definitely no vampire, just a uniquely talented individual." sighed Geoffrey, his hand running through his dark midnight coloured hair.

"I agree. Unlikely as it seems, this boy could just have been unfortunate to have violently vicious enemies, however, all evidence does seem to point to a vampire hunting society here in Japan." said Zach as he quickly sat down in front of the computer and pulling out files.

"Do you believe such a young boy as the one murdered could have made enemies vile enough to stake him?"

"Probably not. These are the autopsy reports from the hospital."

Geoffrey moved behind Zach to read the screen. A few minutes later, Geoffrey straightened from his bent position, frowning.

"I do not like the implications of this report, Zachary."

"Indeed. It is obvious the murderer had medical knowledge, judging from the neck wound. Possibly even one of the medical staff working in the hospital."

Every instinct the two men possessed urged them to snatch their females and hide them away, far from the city. Unfortunately, modern women were not so accommodating.

------------

Geoffrey materialized in the dark hospital room and watched the figure lying quietly on the bed.

"You are not asleep."

"I knew you would come. I saw it in my mind."

Her eyes glittered in the moonlight, her gaze unwavering as she watched him from her hospital bed.

"Do you fear me, then?" asked Geoffrey softly, his head tilting in question.

"Yes...and no."

Geoffrey prowled closer to her bedside, his movements silent, his clothing not even rustling. As if one moment he was across the room and in the next, he had magically transported himself to her bedside.

He reminded her of a predator, stalking its prey.

But almost immediately, he stepped back into the shadows just as the door to her room opened. The nurse smiled and handed Hotaru her medication.

The moment the nurse left, he was back.

"I dislike the sedatives and painkillers you know. But sometimes, the pain in the bone is so bad, I don't know what to do." murmured Hotaru as she felt her eyelids droop.

"Sleep little one." shushed Geoffrey as he smoothed black violet strands of hair away from her face. His palm brushed her face, brushing the pale white of her skin.

Sending himself into her body as energy, he examined her internal organs and bones. The cancer had started out from the bone and had spread like wildfire throughout her whole body. Steeling himself, he set about to make her more comfortable, eliminating the cancer from her would only draw suspicion from the murderers in the hospital. So he did what he could.

Nearing dawn, he stood from the bed and brushed her forehead with a kiss.

His gut clenched tightly as he heard the blood rushing through her veins and the pounding of her heart. He pulled back and cursed.

Watching her peaceful young face, his heart melted. She was his mate and under his care... he would protect her.

Obsession. And obsession was not love. It was very doubtful she would ever come to love someone like him, but he needed her, and with him she would stay.

------------

Somewhere in another part of the hospital, in a secluded dark stairwell, a man and woman argued.

"That boy wasn't a vampire and you know it! We murdered an innocent child!"

"And how would you explain his uncanny knack for reading minds?"

"So the boy was psychic, he walked in the daylight for cripes sake!" shouted the man. "I didn't sign up for this outfit to murder innocents!"

"Be quiet you fool! You're in too deep as it is already. Don't you forget that." snarled the woman as she walked up the stairs and yanked open the door leading to the hospital hallways.

The man stood silent in the darkness, staring at nothing. Finally he gripped his head in his hands and gave an anguished moan.

------------------------------------------------------------

To be continued...

Mweh, are rather short chapter. Surprising I even got up to do anything at all. I'm a terrible procrastinator. In fact, even now, I am procrastinating on my 3D animation which I should be doing. I am so dead.

11/07/05


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